Steve Jobs Approved Backdated Options for Pixar's Lasseter

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that John Lasseter was granted back-dated options as part of his contract renewal in 2001. The options were granted at a price from three months before the contract was signed, which also happened to be the lowest price from the prior year. The contract was signed by Pixar CEO and Chairman Steve Jobs, who was investigated and ultimately cleared in an ongoing probe into back-dated options probe at Apple Inc.

Back-dated options are not illegal, although they must be accounted for and disclosed to shareholders according to SEC guidelines. A representative of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Francisco would not confirm or deny the Journal‘s report.